Volume 7 Issue 83

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lan Drury

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rierre Turner
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 An American soldier inVietnam
uses anM60 from an emPlaced
position, with PlentY o!
ammunition belts readY to
hand. In such belts about one
round in six is tracer.
The use of automatic weapons steadily increaseddurtng
World War |tr, and today most infantrymen carry weapons
capable of burst firc, Butthe machine'guttemainstheprime
frrepowercomponent of the infantry squad,, and,classic
desigms like the Bren have lost none of theit effectiveness'
The modern machine-gun is still one of the foot soldier's most powerful
weapons, but it has changed much stnce World War I, when the
machine-gun dominated the battlefields of France and elsewhere. To-
day's machine-gun is much hghter, more reliable and in general more
flexrble in lts tactrcal applications, Most of the machine-gnrns here dis-
cussed are portable enough to be used in locations where it was once
unthrnkable that such weapons could even be carried, but they are still
as lethal and efficrent as they ever were,
The machlne-gun is now in its second generation of development
since World War IL The first generation weapons are strll very much in
evidence wrth virtually every armed force in the world, and are the
post-war general-purpose machine-quns, or GPMGs, In the years after
1945 the GPMG was embraced by many as the way ahead in machine-
gnrn design, but the soldiers in the front line discovered the hard way that
,he all-purpose machine-gnrn is as much a myth as the all-purpose truck
Thus the second generation of machine-guns is now entering servtce
The second-generation weapons are more specialtzed :ha:- .:.=
GPMGs The light machine-gun has made a come-back as the s;-::
support weapon, while the heavy machine-gun has returned in ihe ::, '
of the post-war GPMGs retained for the heavy flre-support role -:.=.
'-
are now in the posrtion of either being retained indefinitely, or are s,,','.
being replaced by the larger-calibre weapons such as the really n:-'-.
machine-guns (of 12 7/0 S-in caiibre and upwards) or the mac:.-=-.
weapons now generally known as cannon. It is the machine-guns tha. :-:=
covered in this study.
At first srght the variety of modern machine-qluns iooks solne-,',':.:
bewilderrng, and the types mentioned here are but a seiection of .'i'-:--- -.
available, More types than can be covered in these pages are arori. L
in the wrngs, for machine-gun development ls still very proqress-'-
Nearly all the major nations are either attempting to gild the ltly by :s-.. =
the existing types, or alternativeiy chastng the myth of the pe:-::'
design, Some of the designs mentioned here do appear tc :.-"=
achieved near-perfectron, for how otherwise can one contempla-: -:.:
longevity of the MG3 and L4A4 Bren Gun desrgns? Others such es .:.=
M60, make one wonder how they have lasted so 1ong,
The mostwidely-used present-day version of the WorldWar II Bren gun ts ::. -=
British L4A4, a conversion to standard NATO calibre. Seen here in action '",':::.
the South African Army, it is also used by the British and many of the ex-
Commonwealth armies, including I ndia.
 7.62-mm FN MAG
World War Il established the general-
purpose machrne-qrun (GPMG) as a vi-
able weapon with its ability to be flred
fuom a light bipocl in the assault role
and ftom a heary tripod in the defen-
sive or sustarned ro1e, A-fter 1945 many
desiqners tried to produce thetr ornm
version ofthe GPMG concept, and one
cf the best was produced in Belgium
during the early 1950s. The company
concerned was Fabrique Nationale or
FN, based at Herstal, and its design
became known as the FN Mitrailleuse
d'Appui G6n6ral or MAG, It was not
Iong before the MAG was adopted by
many nations, and today it rs one of the
most wrdely-used of all modern
I
machine-gun designs,
The MAG fires the standard NATO or as a vehicle defence weapon m a clude Israel, South A-frica, Sinqapore TheBelgianFN MAG is oneof the
1.62-mm (0,3-in) cartridge and uses a ball mounting, and as an antt-aircraft and Argtentina, and there are others, mos t widely used of the pos t-Wor ld
conventional gas-operated mechan- weapon on a tripod or vehicle-hatch Even longer rs the hst of MAG users: a W ar I I gener al-purpose machine -
sm, in which gases tapped off from the mountinq, It is also used on many liqht brief summary includes Sweden, Ire- gans.Well made fromwhat are
barrel are used to drive the breech naval vessels, land, Greece, Canada, New Zealand, usually solid metal billets machined
biock and other components to the The MAG has been widely pro- the Netherlands and so on, There rs tospec, theMAG is avery sturdy but
rear once a round has been fired. duced under licence. One ofthe bet- little chance of the MAG falling out of heavy weapon that is still in
-,'l1rere ter-known nations is the UK, where the fashion, and production continues all production worldwide.
the FN MAG scores over many
:cmparable designs is that the tap- MAG is known as the IJZA2, The British over the world,
ping-off point under the barrel in- introduced some modifications of their
:orporates a regulator device that own, (and have produced the weapon Specification Lengnhs: gmn 1260 mm (49,61 in);
Jows the flrer to control the amount of for export), and there rs no sign of it FNMAG barrel545 mm (21,46 in)
gas r:sed and thus vary the flre rate 10 beingr replaced in the foreseeable fu- Calibre: 7,62 mm (0.3 in) Muzzle velocity: 840 m (2,756 ft) per
sJi the ammunition and other vari- ture as far as the British armed forces Weights: gun only I0.I kg (22.27 lb): second
i:les. For the sustained-fire role the are concerned, Other nations that pro- tripod 10,5 kg(23. 151b); barrel3 kg Rateoffire: (cyclic) 600- 1000 rpm
barrel can be changred easily and duce the MAG for ther own use in- (6.6]b) Type offeed: 50-round belt
;_-.::ckly,
Lr construction the MAG is very stur- Below: The FN MAG is licence-
:r-. Some use is made of steel press- produced in Israel by I srael Military
:-3s riveted toqether, but many com- Industries and is used by all
!'lrents are machined from solid met- branches of the Israeli armed forces.
:- making the weapon somewhat
::avy for easy transport. But thts
s::uctural strength enables the
',1eapon to absorb all manner of rough
-e and it can be used for long periods
-r;-::cut marntenance other than
::=g:rng the barrels when they get
::,: rot. The ammunition is belt-fed,
;;:-:cr can be awkward when the
-r,::pcn has to be carried with lenqths
:: ::mu:ution belt left hanqnng from
:: =ed
and snaqging on just about
,';e:l rised as an LMG the MAG
-i:s aasbuit and srmple bipod, When
a sustamed-fire weapon the
-etr
t Above : D uring the F alkland I slands Below: The FN MAG is fitted to the
-:: -s usually removed and the
;r:{'3:r placed campaign LZAI s were hastily turrets of the German Leopard 2
rs on a heavy tripod,
'-=':r':,- -''nth some form of buffering to pressed into use on improvised anti- tanks in service with the Dutch army.
..s,:ri: car:t of the recoil. However, the aircraftmountings to provide some Pictured here in September I 984 on
l.'r-3 :ar: be adapted to a number of measure of defence against Exercise'Lionheart', the MAG has
:-::::::c'i-inturgts, and is often used as a Argentine attacks on the shipping in been fitted with a blank firing i
I
::-:-ra1'.";eapon on armouredvehicles San Carlos harbour. adaptor.
t
t
1
 FN 5.56-mm Minimi
With the turn away from the healry
NATO 7.62-mm (0,3-in) cartridge to-
wards the smaller 5.56-mm (0,219-in)
round for use by the standard dfles of
most of the NATO nations (and many
others), rt followed that there was a
need for a hght machine-eflrn to use the
new calibre, FN accordingly drew up
the design ofa new weapon that even-
tually became known as the FN Minimi
and was flrst shown in 1974. The Mini-
mi is intended for use only as a squad
suppon weapon as there is no way that
the light 5.56-mm cartridge can be
used effectively for the heavy support
or sustained-fire role, for it simply
lacks the power to be effective at
ranges much beyond 400 m (437
yards), Thus heavier-calibre weapons
such as the FN MAG will still be re-
tained for this role in the futwe.
The Minimi uses some desiqn fea-
tures from the earlier FN MAG, includ-
tng the quick-change barrel and the
eEs regnrlator, but a new rotary locking
device is used for the breech block
which rs gn:ided insrde the receiver by
two gmrde rails to ensure a smooth
travel, These latter innovations have
made the Minimi rnto a remarkably
reliable weapon, and further reliabilrty
has been rnrroduced into the ammuni-
tion feed. This rs one of the Minimi's
major contributions to modern hght
machine-gmn desiqn as it does away
with the long and awkward flapping
ammunition belts used on many de-
sigms and which snag on everythingT
when carried. The Minimi uses a sim-
ple box (under the gun body) which
contains the neatly-folded belt, When
the weapon is fired from a bipod, the
box is so arranged that rt will not inter-
fere with normal use and on the move it
is out of the way of the carner. But the
Minimi goes one step further: if re-
CZECHOSLOVAKIA
7.62-mm vz 59
Czech machine-gun designers can
trace their progeny back to the range
of highly successful machine-guns
started with the vz (vzor, or model) 26
in 1926 and which resulted in the
famous Bren Guns. As successor to
these designs the Czechs produced a
new model during the early 1950s as
"rhe vz 52, which may be regarded as
:he old design updated to use an
ammunition belt-feed system. This was
rot the success of the ear[er weapons,
aiid rs now rarely encountered other
:an in the hands of 'freedom flqhters'
=rd the like, and the vz 52 has thus
::en superseded by the vz 59.
The vz 59 is much simpler than the
=arlier vz 52 but follows the same
;:::-eral lines in appearance and op-
-=:::ron, In fact many of the operatingr
:::-ciples of the vz 52 have been car-
:-:j over, including the gas-operated
i
t_
quired, the belt feed can be replaced
by a magazine feed. FN has shrewdly
quessed that the American Ml6Al rifle
would quickly become the standard
weapon in its class, and has thus made
provision for the Mimmi to use the
Ml6Al's 3O-round magazine, This can
clip into the receiver just under the
belt feed guides after the belt has
been removed,
The association wrth the American
Mi6Al rifle has turned out well for FN,
for the Minimi has been adopted as the
US Army's squad fire-support weapon,
and is now known there as the M249
Squad Automatic Weapon, or SAW.
This version will fire the new standard
NATO SS109 5.56-mm cartridge rather
than the ear[er M]93 cartridge, The
SS109 has a longTer and heavier bullet
than the earlier cartridge and uses a
mechanism, The ammunition feed sys-
tem rs also a carry-over from the vz 52,
in which it was regarded by many as
being the only successful feature, In
this feed system the belt is carried into
the receiver by gmides where a cam
system takes over and pushes the car-
tridge forward through the belt link
into the weapon, This system was
copied on the Soviet PK series, but on
the vz 59 the belts are fed iiom metal
boxes; for the light machine-gun role
with the light barel and desiqrnation vz
59L, one of these boxes can be hung
from the right-hand side ofthe gun in a
rather unbalanced fashion, The
weapon may be used in the LMG role
with bipod or tripod mountings.
For the heavy machrne-gmn role the
vz 59 is fitted with a healry barrel. In
this form it is known merely as the vz
59. When fitted with a solenord for
drfferent rifling in the barrel, but is
otherwise srmilar to the Amencan car-
tridge,
T\uo possible varrants of the Minimi
are a 'para'ver'sion which uses a shor-
ter barrel and a shdrng butt to make
the weapon shorter overall, and a vehi-
cle model with no butt at all for mount,
rng in armoured vehicles, The Minimi
itself has many ingenious detail points
as well: the trigger guard may be re-
moved to allow operatlon by a man
wearinq winter or NBC warfare
gloves, the front handgnrard contains a
cleaning kit, the ammunition feed box
has a simple indicator to show how
many rounds are left, and so on.
Overall the Minimi may be re-
garded as one of the best of the new
family of 5 56-mm liqht machine-guns.
It will be around for a very long time.
firing in armoured vehicles on a co-
axial or similar mount it is known as the
vz 59T. This does not exhaust the varia-
tions of the vz 59 series for, no doubt
with an eye to possible sales outside
Czechoslovakia, there is a version that
fires standard NATO 7,62-mm (0,3-rn)
ammunition and known as the vz 59N;
the vz 59 series usually fires the Soviet
7.62-mm cartridge,
One rather unusual feature of the vz
59 is the telescopic sight, which can be
used wrth the bipod and the tripod.
This optical slght may be illuminated
internally for use at night and rs also
used for anti-aircraft fire, for which role
the vz 59 is placed on top of a tubular
extenslon to the normal tripod.
To date the vz 59 is known to have
been adopted only by the Czech army,
although other nations may by now
have the type rn use, In the past Czech
Modern Machine-Guns
TheFN Minimihas been adopted by
theUS Army for the Squad Automatic
Weapon (SAW) as the M249. I t is now
entering service with the airborne
divisions of theRapid Deployment
Joint Task Force (RDITF).
Specification
FNMinimi
Calibre:5,56 mm (0,219 in)
Weights: with bipod 6. 5 kg ( 14.33 1c'
with 200 rounds 9.7 kg (21 38 lb)
Lengths:weapon 1050 mm (41.34 r,'
barrel465 mm (18 31 in)
Muzzie velocity: (SS 109)915 m
(3,002 ft) per second
Rate offire: (cyclic) 750-1000 rpm
Type of feed:100- or 200-round bei. ::
30-round box maqazine
weapons have appeared whet:'.'=:
there Ls a market for small arrrl-: i.-l
Czech weapons have lhus re:+:-.-.
rurned up rn the MLddle ta:. =.-.:
especrally rn Lebanon; some .: -':
have certainly been seen there -
date there is no record of any la -,--
purchasrng the NATO-ammu:--.- :
version, but no doub' lhal versl--,-. ','.
turn up in some unexpected r:-*:,= -
spot one day
Specification
vz 59
Calibre: 7.62 mm (0,3 in)
Weights: with bipod and liqht c:"r +.
B67kgt19 I lb): wirhtripodar-c:. : -'
barrel | 9 24 k9 q42.42 Ia1
Lengrths: with hght barrel 1 L l6 r-::-
(43.94 in), with hearry barrel ).2'-Z
-,
(47.84 in); light barrel 593 mm
(23,35 in); heavy barrel 693 mr:
(27 28 rn)
Muzzlevelocity: with irghr ca::. . ' - -
(2.657 ft) per second. and v.-.':. :.- ,.-.'
barrel B3O m(2723|t)por5.-'- -
Rate of fire: (cyclic) 700-80C rc:,
Typeof feed: 50-or 260 r - :.: : + -.
The Czech7.62-mm (0.30-in) vz 5: ::
adevelopment of the earlier v z 5 2 -: I
butmuch easiet to produce.
Developedwith an eye to the
international expor t m ar ket. c e',' :
59}rasbeen adopted by the Czec:.
armed forces but others c'rop :p ::.
various corners of the world.
ltlachine-GuR Tactics
| :e conflicting requirement for machine-guns to be portable t a
'."e: capable oflust-arned fire led to the concept of thegeneral-
: ; r pose machine-gun. However, in recent years the emphasis
-:: s been on specialization, heavy-barrel versions of rifles
:e:r.g iitrodiced at squad level-and sustained fire entrusted
:: such stalwarts as the Browning 0.|0-calibre machine-gun.

; . .:r-ic lVar I the machine-gun was a weapon that could dom,nate the
-t -: '. 4 mannei that made movement vrrtually rmpossible, and at times
: .-.: creadful war machine-quns were often massed in batteries which
,-.=: .^rncie ti-acts of tef]tory impassab e to men and animals. Such a
' -:-:: was not to arise aqa n, for in the wars that followed the static
''. r LneV\es'ernFronLE'oseon y n'.equenr y.Tne.random nanceo'
,. : :r:eld passed to the artrllery and tanks, and only rarely were machine-
$'...i-'f
rE; as
, Yillf
"6*'
r r:.. :o reassert their former role. lnstead the machine-qun took otl a new
support for troops in attack and defence. As warfare tcok on a
.-
'r cf f ireand
- --.;brle ?l'uid form, the machine-gun was often able to pour such
' -: o. f ire on attackinq infantry or onto a pos tion that the enemy's tactical
' : " o' inte^16n became renporar lv dill crlt or 'mposs,ble.
' - -- ^ 3s.rcanof.udcono I onstnemacri^e'g-l-ro+Ten oecan ethepvol
'. Ln an i^'ant'y Jn 1 o' sqJdo cou'd acf. By rovi^g to a 'lank, a
' -r^ corld rpeP ar e-e-y's heao down wh le tne rest o'the scrad The British-produced version of the Belgian FN MAG is known as the LTAL or
t- a'alo-'aote oosit o^ o LTAZ, and is seen here with its butt removed for tfte suslained fire role and
-acie a.r dtt,iLk. I hese tacl cs are st l,widelv
. . -.-lqh the form of the machine-gun has changed. mounted on a bu{{ered tripod. No feed belt is visible as it is fed in from the
. -:d o, Worlo War I tnere were 1wo rypes o{ rac^ nc gJn. The more left-hand side ol the gunfrom a beltbox.
i.o wos lne ledv\, mac^'e-gun l*1r11;t, u'v6 6'' sat o"n a tr:poo and
-- -Jt vo umes of fire. Then there was the lrghter and more portable light indeed carry out these ancilliary roles (and do so quite happ ly to th s day), but the
- --.-.rirn (LMG),
-- -,3-gi-rn (l l\lG) whlch could
corLld be used at low,er command levels than the sold ers soon tea-reC l.rdr tne GpMG concept has ts l m 1s.
. ."- -eavvweaool. B-l ov lhe encj o'WorldWar ll tnese two typestrad The problem for tne sold er was that \r'/hile a GPMG could make a satisfactory
' 'er by a tnird, tne gene a puroose mac^ine gln tGPMGt. lnis was a heavy machine-gun 't was less success{ul as a light machine-gun or squad
- .r
roiion that caught o; fast. Very basicaliy the rd-ea was that one weapon weapon. Most GPMGs use belt-fed ammunition, and when a flapping ammuni-
.: ::
ised for boih the light and the heavy roLes. The GPMG was a r-cooled, tion belt is dragged thr-ough d tches and across country it creates problems for
-
-.s much lighter than the water-cocied, heavy machine-guns, and when the {eeo, to sa} noLn rq o' rl'e tas( faced by the hap'ess carrier. who has
- rre HMGiole the GPMG simply overcame the prcblem of barrel heating constantly to f ree the thrng trom undergrowth and project ons. The GPMG also
. ,= j by arqevolumesof fire) bymeansof arapid-barrel-changecapability. errs on the weighty side for the squad role, and many in servlce GPN,4Gs are far
- .- elscouid beheldcloseathandandfitted lnafewseconds.Thesame heavier and more arru,kward to handle than they should be for such use. A srmple
o. d o. I rredvr lha I ghtb pod'oro'oduci'g raoioairedf 'e, ardwas example of thrs is deployment of the L7A2 {the British army's version of the FN
,'l:lie of LMG use.
-='-si GPMGs were the German MG34 and MG42, the latter having the
MAG) in the squad role compared with the lighter and handier Bren Gun which it
replaced: many soldiers were not happy at that transition, and remarn unhappy
-. -- ::g-terrn nfluence to the extent that it is still ln production. ln the to tn's oay.
: ..- l:"ricd these two designs were soon joined by many others, and for a
- - r . .'.:s GPMGsal1thewav. Economrcallythe ldea madeqood sense: only The LTAI and L7A2 have been adapted far mountings firing out o{ the sides of
'. re world be neeoed, and w th lrcr thai bas c type 61r-io be Army Air Corps Lynx helicopters tbr providing fireiuppoit during an
. e- -o eb ort> de the GDMG ranqe, s-ch as co-ax al -ourttrgs'ot airborne \anding. A special version for carrying in helicopter pods is known
---,. ^e:,copter guns and so on. Many of the post-war generation could as the L20AI . Although effective, these guns a re really too light for this role.

-8.1

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+
,'*_rt,.
*
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 Modcrn Mae hint=-G *:' s

.--'-:s c^ move back towards the specialist LMG, and v/ith ihe
- -: -iL\been-a
- 56
5 mn {0 2.1 f-in) cartridge such LMGs can be really light
., -oJCngdpprcc:dolcjfrloJ^l:o':,lo-otic' rc.-old!,lreLNlG
-=:: :c,tsorgrnai role of producing aulomattc fire suppori for the
:-.: As ihese modern squads move thev can produce firepower out
,,-. fn io their numbers frorn their assauI rifles arrd squad support
,,i ,r ls ihe latter that produces the voluine of accui-atelv,ain,ed'fire
-. :;liv so useful.
,.: back to the LMG nas nct done away wth the role of the HMG.
.r p dce cn tlre modern battlef ield forthe cenirally'controlled volume
'c:;vV we,rpon. This s st, linnporiant. for most LMGs are capable cf
- ''e only to about 60C m (655 yards) at best, and l-lMGs of len harre to
.:'!ets or target areas ai ranges well over 1000 m 11,100 yards). The
: 55 mm rounds quite srmply canrrot do this, for their propeilant ioads
, ej to much shorter ranges. lt is lrue that',he recent Belgian SS -1Cg
i-
1as more po"/er at longer ranges than tire American |"{ I 9,t, brt L sLili
-a,ch the power of the larger 7.62-mm (C.3-in) round in e ther rts NATO
:ie rar more anctent {but still good) Soviet equ valent.
-' --:
- GDIIG appears to be facling"awayas a coniept, even if many of the
: : :=rcrat on live on rf a sr-rppcrt role. They w ll be maintained at companV
: : .: on level and distributed'as requ red, ouhiie the liqht--rweapons w,tl Oe ldsGPMG can equal tircrange andsfopplnEpawer af the heavt-cai:r::t
, -:..ied a1 squad ievel. Some observers have remarl ed thart many cuilenr inae&rne-Eru.ns. Many counfi:ies use theBrotvninE A.50-calibre ln r:e
--'::hine guns are little rnore than machine rifles, i.e. i'tfles firted wtth susfained-fiie rale. This is the MZ HB version produced by FIti. vthjc: ::c.: -:=:
-: :: rari-e s and a light bipod, and for some of the ries qils r.enilcned rrr th,s aqatckbarre| change.
,' .:. .:rs is true; the exanrpies of the Soviet BPK and some of the Heckler &
Q: ? t UOVILU-. BJI OpC i,/ o S.]LIJO 'vpcPO^ ldq n Jr Tr ure l1c. a belts. spare barrels ancl all h s own qear. Contrast rh s wiln ihe i,.--- -. .
: - .r€ r iie, especia ly tf the squad ts expected to operate in rouoh or dlfficult heavy suppori \^/eapon carried on an armoured vehicle, rnlih ir: ,: j-. - .

-'-. r Under such conditions ii s rl e y that the liVG rr;ill be the only fire e - .rr\ ng o '4,/o.ipL,' vreigh ng o'lv n I LrlL m :ra .^a^ Ll
: i:.rt lhe squad can expect, arrd rt Lhus has to be capable of more than ;hort . l^S FnrSO.F ,-a-tnc sdteadybe-O-,.ga.eo,y -.. --
. , . rf lre. Enfield.Weapon Svstern, with the lWand rhe fSfiVwoitrng cicser',, .1;- -. .
^ere s one factor lhat is ncrry often overlooked ',vhen clca ino with n,odern swapo'lQrr-ff ,r tO ldgo/IrecwnCt 1^q.irCd, .,OJe .^ -: -
-''-,tr'7 tactics. Modern tnfaniry ts usually carried intc; acticn o; some sort of :ifr v'.f,cnrcr.irrlta l,relwr .lOtbea,One.'O. -eFeoAr- , ,

. ^ : e {usually an arrnoured personncl carr er) Frequently the squad weapons,
-
- have to be ltred frorr nsrde the vehtcle, especiaily
-iing lhe machrne-guns,
- ::trolilng and policin{situat ons. Thus specialconstde-ation has to be i]lr;en to
-: i'lpes of mcunting the machine-gun will use , and thus io the cost of tiie basic
.::lon has to be addecl the expense cf special mountings, be lirey
,:f,esia mounis in Jeeps or moie complex bal mounrings"in armouled veh-
3,rl foi- nrany arrned fcirces ttre image of ihe machtne,gunner is usuaily that of
1heAKM1RPl(combnatlonforyearsandthelJSArmywl]soonr:':.-
MinimirM 164'1 mix. When that happens the M60s, FN MAGs, l7 .2. . ' . ,
other cui-nbersome weapons wili go back to the heavy supocfi .. : .'
lroirt-lrne soldier ur il be happy at ihe prospeci.
str-nple
Spenf cases areseen rn fJ:gh; a s they are ejected from theki60's feerJ
fv?eeha;xrs&?. 7fte/f60 uses a tnechanism based on lhe Germ an Worid'1, :: ..'
&4G 4 2 allied wifft some ofiher fe atures de rived frorn tke G e rm an F G I 2, :. : : : -

,'. overloaded indivirjual lugg ng about a hea'J-y weapon and festcorred with
r'r^nrunltion belts. Not far Jrira/,s his equaiiy loaded'assrsiani carryine more hy ffte US ar:ned foyces.

..r,:*,;ali1,::Jtai!
r.i.{'|,r+':'-'--' '-

.5,

i:'
 7.62-mm SIG 710-3
The Swiss 7.62-mm (0,3-in) SIG 710-3 ts
a v/eapon that on paper appears to be
one ofthe flnest of its class, The overall
desrqn, construction and rellability of
the SIG design is such that it would
appear to be a world leader, In fact
nothingr of the kind has occurred, for
this most promising of machine-gnrn
designs has now been taken out ofpro-
ductron, and around the world it can be
found in service wtth nattons such as
Brunei, Bolivia and Chile,
The reason for this stranqe state of
affairs can perhaps be seen in the fact
that when the Swiss produce anY
weapon desiqn they do so in a manner
that can only attract superlatives, The
Swiss produce weapons wtth a magni-
ficent degnee of care and attentlon to
finish, and while people may be willing the system constitutes a form of de- The locking system is identical with The 7.62-mm (0.30-in) SIG 7 I 0-3
layed blowback, with the chamber that employed on the Sturmetewehr 45 general- purpose machine- gvn was
to pay heavily for similarly-engtneered
Swiss watches, they are not willtng to fluted to prevent spent cases 'sticking', whrch failed to reach sewice with the based on German wartime design
pay on the same scale for machine- The flrst SIG 7lOs were virtually hand- German army before the surrender of experience and should have
gnrns, The SIG products tend to be ex- made weapons that attracted much May 1945. emerged as one of the tinest
pensive, and in a world where atrention (but few orders), so an in- But the SIG 710-3 does have many machine-gun designs ever, but in the
machine-guns can be produced on creasing number of production expe- original Swiss features, not the least of event only smallnumbers were
simple machine tools and metal stamp- dients was incorporated into the de- which is the type of rapid barrel produced.
ing jigs the finely machined weapon sign, to the point where the SIG 710-3 change, Many extras were developed
has little chance of commercial suc- makes use of some stamptnqs; need- for these machine-gmns, including one
cess. less to say, these are ofvery hrgh qualt- buffered tripod for sustained flre, Spe- Specification
The SIG 710-3 is actually the third in ty. The machine-ql1n sports some fea- cial features such as dral sights and sIG 710-3
a series of machine-guns, the first of tures from German weapons. The telescopic sights were also produced, Calilrre: 7,62 mm (0.3 in)
which were produced during the early Swiss were very influenced bY the and in the end the SIG 7i0-3 could be Weights: gmn 9,25 kg (20,39 1b); heavy
post-war years In srmple terms the MG42 and in the years after the war regarded as one of the most advanced barrel 2.5 kq (5,5 I lb); light barrel
first SIG 710 models were machtne- produced several desiqns based on machine-guns available anywhere, 2,04 kq (4.5 Ib)
gnrn versions of the Swiss Sturmqewehr features of the model, The SIG 710-3 But it was all for nothing as far as SIG Lengrths:qLrn 1143 mm (45 in); barrel
Modeil 57 (assault rifle model 1957), trigger mechanism is the same as that was concerned, high development 559 mm (22 in)
and the machine-qun employs the of the MG42, and so is the ammunitton and production costs (combined with Muzzlevelocity: 790 m (2,592 ft) per
same delayed roller and block locking feed which rs so effictent that it the strict rules of the Svnss Qiovernment second
system as the CETME and the Heckler accommodates both American and regardinq arms sales) leading to an Rateoffire: (cyclic) 800-950 rpm
& Koch rifles, On the Swiss weapons German belt linkings without trouble. eariy exit from production, Type of feed: belt

:
ffi:- usA

7.62-mm M60
The M60 is a qeneral-purpose
machine-gnrn that can trace its origins
back to the latter period of World War
II when it was known as the T44, The
Cesign was greatly influenced by the
new German machine-gun designs:
:he ammunition feed is a direct lift from
:leMG42, and the piston and bolt
-sembly was copied from the revolu-
:-cnary 7,92-mm (0.3 12-in) Fallschirm-
-lgerqewehr 42 (FG42). The T44 and
-= production version the M60, made
::nensive use of steel stampings and
piastics, and the first examples were
-.sued for service with the US Army
i':ring the late 1950s,
These flrst examples were not a suc-
::ss. They handled badly and some of
:-: Cetail design was such that chang-
-:-; a barrel involved taking half the
'r rt calls the Maremount Lrightweight The American M60 is a rather bulkY
=:.cn apart. These early difflculties near future by the 5.56-mm (0,219-tn)
-,r:r: gradually eliminated, and the M249 Minimi for the US ArmY. For Machine-Gun, which is the M60 much and heavy weapon that is awkward
1.1j, : now as efficient a weapon as heavrer use the M60 can be mounted modified to reduce weight and im- to handle. First produced in the late
blt many serving soldiers still on a tripod or on a vehicle Pedestal prove handlinq, The bipod has been it underwent a protracte d
I 9 40 s,
=:-.- moved back under the receiver and a development programme betore it
:::,:ss not to like the weapon for its mount.
Some specral versions of the M60 foregrip has been added, The gas- entered service in the late 1950s, and
;:=::laily awkward handling proP- operated mechanism has been sim- has been widely used ever since. I t is
=: =: 3'.ri the M60 is the US Army's have been produced, The M60C ls a
remotely-fired version for external plified, and there is now provision for a now a reliable and efficient weaPon
-:s: ;:::eral-purpose machine-gun, winter trigger, The result is a much used by several armies.
::-r ,: :-:',',: serves rn a host of roles. mounting on helicopters, The M60D is
:- --s 'casrc form as a squad suPPort a prntle-mounted version with no butt lighter and handier weapon than the
'.'.-:ap.r the M60 is htted with a for mounting rn helicopter gnrnships original, although it can now be r.rsed
. :::-:eci steel bipod mounted just be- and some vehicles, The M60E2 is a only for the liqht machine-qun role. Specification
--.: -.:.= muzzie, For Ihrs purpose it is much-altered variant for use as a co- The new weapon is currently under- M60
:=::-:: by a small handle which is axial gmn on armoured vehicles, going evaluation trials by several Calibre: 7.62 mm(0.3 in)
Weights:Qnrn 10.51 kg(23. U lb);
:=:-:: i-rsf ior the loads placed on it; Throughout much of lts Production armres.
barrel 3.74 kq (8.245 Ib)
:,::=:-.':r :he Point of balance of the life the M60 has been manufactured by The M60 is now rn service with
-. the Saco Defense Systems Division of several armies other than the US Army, Lengths: gnrn overall I 105 mm (43 5 in)
:-
-, ^': :rurely wronq, instead many the Maremount CorPoration, which Taiwan not only r.rses the M60 but pro- barrel559 mm (22 in)
5--:-::: ::e]er to use a sling and the
-:r:::- -s 3fien flred on the move was always aware of the shorlcomings duces rt as well. South Korea is another Muzzle velocity: 855 m (2,805 ft) per
'-:-= :::-q steadred by the sling, For of the M60's desiqn, especially rn the Asian operator, while farther south the second
light machine-qun role, Accordingly Australian army also has the M60 in Rate offire: (cyclic) 550 rpm
--.= -::-,::-a:ine-qlm role the M60 is a TYpe offeed: SO-round belt
: :,=-; :... ,l','rtll be rePlaced in the the company has now Produced what
'Bttsting Ccps'-
The I'160 inVielnam
In the desperate close-range actions
against theViet Cong, the M60 machine-
gun teams had to achieve fire
superiority over awell-armed and
skilful enemy - no easy task with a
comp licated and s ome time s
temperamentalweaPon.
In 1884, the prototype Maxim machine-gun
(water-cooled) weighed 27 Zkg (60 Ib) and
fired an 11,43-mm (0.45-in) bullet at the rate of
600 rounds per minute. In 1984, the M60
machine-qun (alr-cooled) weighs 10.4 kq
(23 ]b) and fires a 7.62-mm (O 3-in) buliet also at
the rate of 600 rounds per minute Add the
tripod, and you have a total weight ol 23 6 kg
(52 ]b)
The main difference between the two are, of
course, accuracy and reliabilltyi but the tactic-
al use (particularly in the US Army) remains the
same: the rnachine-gnrn is primarily a static
defensive weapon, oniy oifensively used to
provide fire-support for advancing infantry.in
ihe case of the M60; thrs has as much to do with
the United States' strategic doctrine as to tac-
trcs: the USA is perceived only as fighting a
defensive war (as in the instance of NATO
forces facing a Warsaw Pact advance), and
overall, the USA relies on firepower over flex'
ibility and manoeuvrabilitY,
As the US Armyre-
equipswithanew
Kevlar helmet and new
body armour, the 7.62-
mm(0.30-in)M60
machine-giun soldiers
on until the new M279
Minimireplaces itin
the lightmachine-gun
role.
Iinothing else, Vietnam showed that the best
defence can often be attack, and that flexibllity
can be as important as firepower. Nonetheless
it is best to forget the idea of the M60 being
fired from the hrp as film-makers would have it:
even though the M60 is exceptronally well ba-
lanced, after only four rounds on automatic it
wilt pull high and to the right,
As in ail weapon systems, there is a distinct
gap between the theory and practice of firtng
the M60, Instructors may (often do) wax lyrical
about Dangerous Space (the distance a round
or burst remains at a man's height above the
ground); Cones of Fire (shot dispersal around
lines of fire); and the Beaten Zone (pattern of
descending shots). But the M60 machine-
gunner in the US Army (or any machine-
gunner, for that matter) is interested in accura-
-y, reliability, maintenance, how easy it is to
fire and how easy it is to carry. For rts size, the
M60 scores well on all points, as well it mlght,
because it owes much of its design to the
famous German World War II machine-grun,
the MG42, an updated version of which is strll in
servlce with the West German army as the
MG3. So, remembering that no comparisons
wlth British Bren, LMG or possibly even the
GPMG should be made, we should now take a
look at the M60 in action, And where else to
look but the M60 in Vietnam.
A rifle company has harboured up for the
night. With two M60s per platoon (three or four
platoons per company) plus at least a couple
more M60s belonginq to company HQ, plus the
12,7-mm (0 5-1n) machine-guns that have been
dismounted from the personnel carriers, plus
mortars, plus rockets, you can begin to under-
stand why a modern rifle company Is sai -::
have a fire power equai to a World trla: -
infantry brigade. If you are the M60 Qur:r:er
you will have made sure that yorrr !r-eapc:- s
firmly posltioned; that means either usrnlr -::
tripod or resting the barrel on tree trunj<s :r
sandbags, If you are firlng through a qrc-.r:-tr-
level embrasure, you may be usrng --:ie
attached bipod; but you wouJd prefer no: ::
because that means you have to use your -el
hand to hold the butt into the gnound '";he::
firing on automatic, and that increases the rs<'
of getting your shoulder into too close ccn:a::
with the butt end, whrch could mean at bes: a
very nasty bruising, at worst a dislocated shor:--
der, More to the point, unless youare a'nattxa,
machine-gunner, it will play all sorts of hell -*,t
your accuracy when you are firlng on autcn:a-
tic, And as you do not expect to fire on sing.e
shot, you will definitely need to be i',-el'
planted. You have loaded with ball animrur-
tion, with tracer in reserve, In the daytrme ycu
might have both lncendiary and spo::er
ammunition in reserve, but you certainly wor:-a
not need armour-piercing: ii the enemy dc
have any AFVs, they keep them well tudden
As an M60 gunner, you have an E4 speciais:
rating. It is not a command rank, but it does p-;:
you firmly in charge of (i,e. responsible for) ':e
qun; you are the head man of the three-rna::
crew the M60 requires. In fact, you are n::
expectinq to be called tonight; there ate nc
heavy enemy troop concentrations in the area
so the most you can expect is a sniper, or a le-.r
rounds of mortar fire or possibly an artiliery
barrage, And there will not be very much iha:
you can do about those, at least in yow presen:
posltion,
M60s are still encountered in South EastAsia;
many were handed over to pro-American local
forces, while many more were captured bF various
gaerrilla and other forces.This exanplewas
photographed in North Vietnam in I 975.
tr'e={
i:+#
 Like soldiers the world over, you have man-
aged to make yourself reasonably comfortable
, , , until your'sergeant walks over to tell you
that your sqLiad is going out on ambush tonight
and would you (please) be ready to move out in
20 mlnutes.
The first thing you do is check your weapon
Never mind that you checked it only that after-
noon; rf it breaks down in a company slrong-
point, at least there are a minimum of seven
other M60s (not to mention the 12,7-mm/0,5-in
M2s) to take up the slack while you site a new
weapon. On this ambush there wrll only be one
M60 because at nlght, in the jungle, two M6Os
will get in each other's way, probably end up
shooting their own troops. Your number two
carries the spare parts and cleaning kit, and
although everythrng checks out OK, you de-
crde to change the barrel, It only takes two
seconds (you once dld it in 1,5 in trarning) and it
is not as if you are being wasteful, because your
number two always has at least three spare
barrels wrth hrm. Twenty minutes later, and
you are ready to move out.
Your M60 (or 'pig' as you have come to call it)
is slung around your neck and shoulders, Spare

Below: The M60 was known as 'the Pig' to the men

who had to lugitthrough the jungle, butit
provided the squadwith tremendous firepower.
Shooting in combatwas dubbed'busting caps', a
derisive reference to playingwith cap guns as
children.

Above: AVietnam M60 is seen in actionwith an cause jams at the most diflicultmoments, and it
tmprovised addition to the ammunitionfeed to was normal for one man towatch the feed at all
ensure a trouble-free entry of the belt into the times to avoid troubles.
,,veapon. Snagged or twisted belts could often

i::!.:.r, .h\ i,
.:, 1

i .': rf .': !, rrR. i

t//
lt,
bands of ammunition also cnss-cross your
shoulders, and you are carrylng a box of
ammunition in your left hand. Your number two
(a private first class) rs carrying a box in each
hand, plus one on his shoulders, plus spare
parts and the cleaning kit, Your number three
(a private) ls carrying the tripod (it welghs
3 kg/6.71b) and even more ammunitlon than
your number two, Tonight the sergeant has
decreed that all other squad members will also
carry spare ammunition for the M60 (no won-
der ihey call it a 'pigr') and it will be our number
three's job to make sure the spare ammunition
is centralized and avallable when you need it,
Moving through the night, the two places you
do not walk are point and rear, As far as possi-
b1e, your squad will provide a shield for you
until you are in position; you carry the major
firepower, and are thus the most vulnerable to
a sniper's bullet. The track your squad is follow-
ing runs through dense primary jungle, It is
supposedly clear of mines and booby traps,
because the enemy uses it for a courier and
supply route; even so, possibly you reflect that
one of the good points about being hrgh on a
sniper's target list is that someone else rs liable
to step on a mine before you do. So long as you
keep in single file, that is, and make sure to
follow the steps of the man in front ,, , not
always easy to do at night in the jungle,
Your sergeant signals that you have reached
the ambush pornt, and indicates to you where
to set up. The team swings into action, Normal-
ly, it takes less than one minute to be ready to
fire from the moment the trrpod hits the ground,
But tonight, as you will be firing down the track,
towards the approaching enemy (no point in
firrng from the side of the track because you
would be too close to get in a proper burst),
your weapon has to be clamped on a fixed line
of fire otherwise you might end up spraying
your own squad, Now, with your weapon fixed,
ammunition stacked around you, your number
two besrde you, everyone and everythtng
camouflaged up, you sit behind your 'pig' and
wait, And wait, And wait, And you are probably
strll wartrng when dawn breaks , , , unless, just
for once, intelligence was I0O per cent accu-
rate and the enemy drd appear,
Right: During theVietnamWar theM60 btecame a
virtual symbolof the Americanpresence in the
conflict, as cametamen tended to become
attracted by the military and aggressive
appearance of theweapon.ltwas widely used in
Vietnam, as its high rate of fire was used as a
counter to the elusive guerrilla targets.
,,=... -4f,
"=: -- &.
!I
'.*.
l:iii:.:. lr:i:.+'
lliii:::::
:ir:ii::i:'.r.
'Busting Caps'- The M60 inVietnam

Assuming they did, the firefight would prob-
ably have been over very quickly. First, your
weapon has an effective range of up to 1000 m
(1,100 yards, which means that at l00m (110
yards) it is one of the most effective weapons
available, with a stopplng power that is close to
being awesome; and second, no one stays
around for too long when they are facing the
wrong end of an M60. While most armies teach
an Immediate Action drill on berng ambushed
that entails charging through the ambushing
enemy, it is a very brave, lucky or foolhardy
soldier that manages to charge any machine-
Sun , , , and llves to tell the tale.
So, if intelligence has been correct, the
firefight has probably lasted less than a minute
belore the enemy have been kilied, captured
or have srmply melted away into the surround-
ing darkness, And if that has happened, you
wonder (not for the first time) why so much
spare ammunltron is always carried. The
answer is slmple, Your weapon is the pnncipal,
indeed the only, weapon capable of providing
fire support for your squad, Your role ls not
simply to kilI the enemy but to save the lives of
your fellow soldiers, That means covering fire,
when you try to make the enemy keep their
heads down and think twice about chasing af-
ter you or even firing back. And covering fire
expends an enormous amount of ammunition
because often you do not have a firm target.
So, whether successful or not, your squad
makes its way back to base. This has probably
been the last ambush you will go ofi, because
you are due for a transfer to helicopter gunner,
Probably'someone' has noticed how accurate
you are, and firing an M60 from a Huey needs
accuracy, In fact, when the M60 was first used
on 'choppers', lt was attached to the skids,
which meant it could only fire in the direction
the chopper was pointing. But now it is
mounted on a pintle by the door that allows you
three-way movement; you will soon learn at
training school how to use that movement to I
compensate for the movement of the Huey,
Whatever happens, you seem destrned to
stay an M60 gunner, unless you are promoted
away from it, You might call rt a 'pig', but it is
more accurate and more comforting than an
M16, In fact, it is as accurate as the old MI rifle;
old soldiers in the US army talk about that
weapon in the same way as their British coun-
terparts talk about the Lee Enfield,
Left: The machine-guns carried on these BellIlH-
lDs were special versions of the M60, known as the
M60D. The M60D was mounted on a pintle and had
no butt, and used a special accessory on the feed
mechanism . I t was widely used in Vietnam for area
suppression lire and many M60Ds were mounted
on the exterior ofvehicles.

buffer Iocking plate actuating cam roller operating rod

barre,,:'lr r{

tngger prn

trigger

hflng prn sPnng sear plungel trigger spring operatl ng rod d rive s. - - .
?

t
I

Above : An M 60 light machine-gun team in action

during troop exercrsesin Soulh Korea, where the
M60 is used notonly by theUS Army and Marine
Corps but also by the Republic of Korea (ROK)
troops. Other nations thatuse the M60 include fiash suppressor
Australia andTaiwan, and some have passedinto
gruerrilla hands, including the IRA.

barrel

i .11..*'

/1::-:
I a.:::,
lrr*
|!*
t,t}.$
! r*. ii

gas port pluq gas cylrnderextension i*€

i elE
lt;:
:-.-;
i^:
::fu:
:1*re
r:lJ!

T.g2-mm t.160 AI
. Li
:*:
:\-):
i

fs-:i
 SINGAPORE
5.56-mm CIS Ultima:<
The relatively small natron of Singa-
pore has rn recent years become a
major member of the rnternational de-
fence mat6riel market. Starting from
virtually nothing, Singapore has rapid-
]y built up a defence manufacturing
industry and amonq recent products
has been a light machine-gun called
the CIS Ultimax 100 or 3U-100.
The Ultimax lO0 can trace its origins
back to 1978, To provide a framework
in which to work, the newly-formed
Chartered Industries of Singapore
(CIS) had obtained a licehce to pro-
duce the 5,56-mm (0,219-rn) Armalite
AR-18 and also the Colt M16A1 rifles,
Usrng these two weapons as a basis,
CIS decided to bulld in some ideas of
therr own and the Ultrmax 100 was the
result. Some of the early prototypes
were less than successful, but dili-
gence and the application of some
sound engineering removed the early
problems, and the Ultimax 100 is now
regarded as one of the best weapons
in its class.
The Ultrmax 100 fires the M193 5,56-
mm cartridge, although lhere is no
reason why it could not be convefied
to fire the new SS 109, It is a light
machine-gun that is really light, for CIS
was understandably keen to produce a
weapon suited to the relatrvely light-
statured personnel found in the Asian
world, The result is that the Ultimax 100
handles very like an assault rifle, CiS
has taken great palns to reduce recoil
forces 1o a minrmum, and has even rn-
troduced a feature it calls'constant re-
coil', With this feature the breech
block does not use the back-plate of
the recelver as a buffer, as is normal in
many similar designsi instead a system
of springs absorbs the forces and the
result is a weapon that can be handled
with ease and smoothness, The Ulti-
max 100 can be fired from the shoulder
with no problems at all,
The likeness to an assault rifle is car-
ried over to the ammumtlon feed, The
Ultimax 100 uses a 100-round drum
magazine under the body that can be
changed with the same facility as a
conventional box magazine. The drum
magazines can be carried in a special
webbing carrier, For firing on the
move a forward gnp is provided, and
to make the weapon even handier the
butt may be removed, For more accu-
rate firing a bipod is a fixture and the
barrel change is rapid and easy. If re-
quued normal Ml6Al 20- or 30-round
il f.hz-** pr
3ne very noticeable feature ln Sovtet
small-arms desrgm is lhe strange mu-
:*re of innovation and consewatism
:ai seems to beset eve'ry generation
:: weapons. Despite the impact made
by' the then-novel 7,62-mm (0,3-in)x39
:artridge used in the AK-47 assault
:le family, Soviet machine-gnrns have
::rtinued to use the much more
p:',';erfu1 7,62-mmx 54R cartridge,
;::-ch retains a drstinct rim at its base,
-:-= nm was origdnally used for extrac-
lom the old Mosin-Nagant rifles
-:r ran be traced back to 1895, if not
--:-3:
:-=::le. but the same round is used for
::-: Red Army's current general-
;--:p.cse machine-gnm known as the PK
:.:l-3s
-:ere are several members of the
il- :=ce. The PK rs the basic gun with
= :=a; barrel marked by flutes along
100
box magazines can be used in place of
the drum.
Already accessories for the Ultimax
100 abound, Perhaps the most unusual
of them is a silencer which is used in
conjunction with a special barrel,
More orthodox items include a special
twin mountinq in which two weapons
are secured on their sides with the
drum magazines pointing outwards,
One very unusual extra rs a bayonet, a
feature which few similar weapons
possess, Rifle grenades can be fired
from the muzzle without preparation,
To date the Ultimax 100 is avatlable
in two versions; the Ultimax 100 Mk 2
with a fixed barrel and the lntimax I00
Mk 3 with the easily-chanqred barel.
More versions are certain, for the Ulti-
max 100 has a most promisinq future. It
is already in service with the Singa-
pore armed forces and many more na-
tions are showinq a great interest in the
weapon, It rs certainly one of the hand-
iest and most attractlve of the 5.56-mm
light machine-guns.
its exterior. This was flrst seen in 1946,
and srnce then the IKM has arrived on
the scene; this is an improved version
of the PK that is lighter and simpler rn
construction, The PKS is a PK mounted
on a tripod which can be used for anti-
aircraft as well as ground fire, The PKT
is a version for use on armoured vehi-
cles, while the PKM is a PK mounted on
a bipod, When the PKM is mounted on
a tripod rt becomes the PKMS, The Pffi
has the usual butt and trigTger mechan-
ism replaced by spade grips and a
'butterfly' tdgger arrangement.
The PK appears to be all things to a1l
men, and as far as the Red Army is
concerned it is a true multr-role type:
the PK is used in roles ranginq from
infantry squad support to AFV use in
special mountings, Al1 the PK
machine-guns operate on the same
principle, based on the Kalashnikov
rotary-bo1t system used in many other
curent Soviet weapons, The interior of
the PK is populated by surprisingly
few parts: there are just the bolV
breech block, a piston and a few
springs, The ammunition feed makes
up a few more parts, and that is about it,
Thus the PK has few parts to break or
jam and it is very reliable. When used
in the light machine-qun role the
ammunition is normally carried in a
metal box slung under. the grun. For
tripod operation variable lengths of
belt are used, In the sustained-flre role
the barrel has to be changed at regmlar
intervals even thougrh it is chromium-
plated to reduce wear (a common
Soviet practice).
These PK weapons must rank
among the most numerous of all mod-
The Ultimax I 00 Mark 3 light
machine-gun is a small and light
weapon that is ideally suited for
m any S outh E as t Asian arme d
forces. It is light and easy to
handle and after aperiodof
development is now a reliable and
efficientweapon.It is now in full-
scale production in Singapore.
Specification
Ultimax I00
Calilore:5,56 mm (0,219 in)
Weights: gun empty 4,7 kg (10,36 lb);
Ioaded with 100-round drum 6.5 kg
(14,33lb)
Lengths: overall 1030 mm (40,55 in);
barrel S0B mm (20 in)
Muzzle velocity: (M193) 990 m (3,248 ft)
persecond
Rate offire: (cyclic) 400-600 rpm
Type of feed: 100-round drum, or 20- or
30-round box magazine
Below : The Illtimax I 00 uses a drum
magazine holding 100 5.56-mm
(0.219-in) rounds. Itcan also use 20-
or 31-round box magazines. The full
100-round drum can be fitted in only
I1.6 seconds, butmore drumscan be
carried in the special carrier shown
here. A bayonetcan be titted and a
silencer is available.
ern machine.-gnrns, They are r.rsed not
only throughout the Red Army but also
by many members of the Warsaw
Pact, The Chinese produce a copy
known as the Type 80. Both the PK and
the Tlpe B0 have been passed on to
many nations in the third world and
some are now in the hands of 'freedom
flghters',
The one odd thing regarding the PK
series is the retention of the old rim-
med 7.62-mm cartridgre. Even the con-
sewatrve Bntish discarded theu be-
loved 7,7-mm (0,303-in) cartridqre de-
cades ago, but the Soviets appear to
be more conservative still. Thns there
originated the odd alliance of the su-
perb PK machine-gun with all its many
fine points and a cartridge that was
developed during the l890s.
 I.52-mm PK (continued) Modern Machine-Guns
Specification
?K
Calibre: 7,62 mm (0.3 in)
fleights: gmn empty 9 kg ( 19.84 lb);
:,pod 7. 5 kg ( 16,53 lb); 100-round belt
: 14 kq (5,38 lb)
l,engrths: gmn 1160 mm (45.67 in);
:rrel658 mm (25,91 in)
Muzzlevelocity:825 m (2,707 ft) per
s::ond
Rateoffire: (cyclic) 690-720 rpm
Type offeed: 100-, 200- and 250-round
:elts

The Soviet7.62-mm (0.30-in) PK

machine-gun is seen here in its light
machine-gun form as the PKM. It is a
simple and sturdy weapon with few
moving parts, and is widely used by
m any W ar s aw P act arme d forces and
otlter forces around theworld.

il z.hz-** RpK
fires exactly the same 7.62-mmx39
arnrnunition as the assault rifle, but the
commonality goes further, Some spare
parts can be interchanged between
the two weapons, and any soldrer who
can use the AKM (and that means all of
them) can prck up and fire the RPK
with equal facility, If the special 75-
round drum magazine ofthe RPK is not
available any magazine from an AKM
can be fitted in its place, One thing the
Soviet soldier will miss if he ever has to
use the RPK in close action is that it
Seen iere rn the hands of a Bulgarian
patatuooper, theRPK is used by
many WarsawPacf armjes as a
squad fire support weapon.
Developedfrom theAKM, itfires the
same 7.62-mm (0. 30-in) ammunition
as the rifle but uses a larger 4)-round
box magazine. The barrel cannot be
changed.
does not have a mounting bracket for a
bayonet,
Consrdering that the weapon is in-
tended as a light machine-qrun, it is
surprising that the RPK does not have
provrsion for changing the barrel when
it gets hot, In order to ensure the barrel
does not overheat, recruits are trained
to limit burst-firing to about BO shots
per minute, For most tactical purposes
this will be more than adequate, but
there must be times when this flre rate
will have its disadvantaqes, Apart from
the 75-round drum already mentioned,
there are cuwed box magazines hold-
lng 30 or 40 rounds, Some RPKs have
been seen with infra-red night siqhts.
A copy produced by the Chinese rs
knoum as the Type 74.
In recent years the Red Army has
changed its standard rifle calibre to
the new 5.45-mm (0,2146-in)xlB car-
trtdge, For this round the AK-74 rifle
was developed, and it follows that a
new version of the RPK would follow, It
has now appeared as the RPK-74.
Apart from the scalingr down of some
parts to suit the smaller calibre, the
RPK-74 is in overall terms identical
with the RPK,
The RPK appears to be a popular
weapon with the Red Army and the
many Warsaw Pact natrons to which it
has been deltvered, The type appears
to be produced in East Germany and
as far as can be determined the RpK is
strll rn production in the Soviet Union
(and China). It has been handed out to
some nations sympathetic to the Sovre:
way of thinkrng, and needless to sa-;
the RPK has found its wav into tt-e
hands of many 'freedom fighters'. RPKs
were observed during the recer:
fighting in Lebanon and more ha-,.e
been seen rn action in Angola. Despite
its rate-of-fire limitations, the RPK wil,
no doubt be around for many years tc
come, and the Red'fumy still retairs
huge numbers of the type despite the
introduction of the RPK-74.
Specification
RPK
Calibre: 7,62 mm (0,3 in)
Weights: gun 5 kg (11.02 1b); Z5-round
drum 2. I ks (4,63 lb)
Lengnhs: gnrn 1035 mm (40,75 in);
barrel 59I mm (23.27 in)
Muzzle velocity:73T m(2,402 ft) per
second
Rate offire: (cyclic) 660 rpm and
(practical) BO rpm
Type of feed: 7S-round drum, or 30-
and 4O-round box magazines
The SovietRPK is the standard
Warsaw Pact squad fire support
weapon. Itdoesnot have an
interchangeable barrel and so is not
capahle of sustained fire. The desigm
may beregarded as a development
of the AKM assault rifle, and it fires
the same 7.62-mm (0.30-in)
ammunition. A Chinese version is
known as the Tlpe 74.

,',::reas the Red Army uses the PK

:.r-:s as a qeneral-purpose machine-
.-r- :le 7.62-mm (0,3-in) RPK is very
:-:,-- a light machine-gun used for
::-:tr support, The RPK was first
..- :r :n 1966 and it may be regarded
=:: enlarqed version of the AKM
-r=-: rille. It has a longer plus
:::::-
and heavier
rhan the AKM, a light
:,:': a but otherwise the RPK is the
:-:-l::',i€dPOIl aS the AKM,
-,-,-s commonality of weapons
r:a.:,: i :neat deal of sense, The AKM
Automatic Firepower
Machine-guns are at the forefront of all
current infantry actions, whether
silencing guerrilla ambushes or halting
movement in a battle area with
su staine d fire. I n many comb at zones,
the lates t modern we apons serre side
by side with guns whose desr'grnspre-
dateWorldWarll.
When one considers recent conflicts, a factor
readrly appreciated ts that the modern
machine-gun has had considerably less effect
on the modern battle scene than might have
been expected. In the last few years not many
wars have settled down to a hefty war of attri-
tron, the main exception being, of course, the
prolonged and bitter war between iran and
Iraq, There the old conditions of trench warfare
have been re-established and there the
machine-gun still retains the malign domt-
nance that rt had during World War L Both
sides use a mixture of weapon types. The Iraqts
rely malnly on Sovret-supplled machine-guns,
whlle the lranians also use Soviet weapons
leavened by an assortment of types culled from
the international weapons market, In this re-
latively static campaign ihe conditions are
often very iike the protracted days of trench
warfare in World War I, long periods of inactlv-
ity being dramatically interspersed with short
periods of horror when the lranians attempt to
use thelr manpower in humanwave attacks, All
too oiten these massed attacks are easily
broken up by machine-gun lire before they
can even get close to their target trenches.
Happily these scenes are not betng repe-
ated anywhere else in the world at the moment,
On most flashpoint fronts a more fluid and
mobile warfare has been apparent, even when
a carefully sheltered enemy rs attacked by an
equally prepared force. Such condittons
occurred on several occasions in the Falkland
Islands campaign of 1982. There both sides
used the machine-gun to equal effect, but one
oddity of that campaign was that both sides
were using the same weapon, The Argentines
had the Belgran FN MAG, while the Britrsh
forces used the Britrsh-made equivalent, the
L7A2 At times during that short conflict there
were occasions when the machtne-guns pin-
ned down one side or the other: at Goose
Green, for example, FN MAGs equipped with
night-vision sights pinned down the attackers
from the Parachute Regiment for long pertods
during the nocturnal operation. But for most of
the trme the machine-guns were used mainly in
the light machine-gun role, and at the end of tt
all heaps ol Argentine FN MAGs were cap-
tured intact, Unhappily they proved to be of
little benefit to the victors. In the transition from
Belgian to British manufacturing methods and
standards so many changes were introduced
into the L7 that few parts of the Belgtan and
Brrtish versions can be interchanged, Thus the
war booty was of little use to the British army,
though the ammunition was and still is,
Away from the South Atlantic, few people
outside the surrounding areas are aware that a
nasty little war has been conducted along the
borders of South Africa and her neighbouring
states. In thrs theatre the South African defence
lbrces have been conducting a constant coun-
ter-terrorist campaiqn against inflltrating'free-
dom flghter' groups, which have constantly
made hmited and small raids into South Alrican
territory.
In such wars the machine-gun is rarely of
more than limited value, for ranges are usually
short and the terrain often prevents vision in
any direction for more than a few yards, The
South African defence forces have discovered
howeve(, that the machine-gun is a powerfui
anti-ambush weapon, At any sign of an ambush
quick bursts of flre from the ubtquttous FN
MAG would soon break up any intended
attack, In order to provrde themselves with
superior mobility the South Africans oiten
moved on trucks or llght armoured vehicles
such as the Buffel (Buffalo), and the best coun-
ter to them was soon drscovered by the guerril-
las to be the land mine, to which machine-guns
do ]ittle.
But the guerrrllas (and especially the SWA-
PO guerrrllas operatrng out of Angola) did their
best to provide themselves with machine-guns,
While therr Cuban comrades kept themselves
and their Soviet-supphed weapons out of the
way as much as possibte, the SWAPO guerril-
las were left to use whatever they could muster:
captured weapon displays show some very
odd relrcs, rangrng from MG34 Io CzechZBvz
26 weapons, The fact ihat so many of these
machine-guns have been captured by the
South A-fricans is in rtself an indication of how
little effect they have had on that conflict.
Although sporadic outbreaks strll occur, that
little war now seems iikely to be terminated in
the very near future although no doubt the
South Africans will remain on their gn:ard for
some time to come,
Farther north in Africa, unhappy Eritrea is
another locatron of protracted guerrilla warfare
carried out with merciless thoroughness by
both sides whlle around them hordes of people
starve to death. Thls is yet another campaign
where the machine-gnrn can do little more than
boost the morale of one side or another, The
simple fact is that wherever it is fought, guerril-
1a warfare rarely has much use for machine-
gnrns, although it rs conceivable that the new
light machrne-guns might frnd a place for their
comblnation of liqht weight and firepower, Of
course the sudden appearance of a deter-
mined man in the middle of a civilian commun-
ity when he is carrying a machine-gun with
every show of using it can have a numbing
effect on the onlookers. The mere thought of
bursts of machine-gnrn fire in an enclosed area
is usually enough to make anyone obey a ter-
rorist's biddlng, But for the guerrllla such
opportunitres are few and far between,
although IRA terrorists have killed British so1-
diers in Northern lreiand with M60s stolen from
arsenals in the USA, Machine-gmns are not
handy things to carry or to hlde, and as the
emotionai and/or propaganda importance of
the machine-gun to an underground organiza-
tion often appears to be greater than its actual
worth, the possession of such a weapon fre-
quently imposes a deqree of inflexibiiity and
rmmobllity on the group concerned, This also
has happened in Northern lreland, when IRA
terrorists have opted to stand and fight in order
to buy time for others to get the preclous M60 to
a safe house, in some cases this has resulted in
the capture of the M60 by the British army and
the death or imprisonment of the IRA members
concerned,
AnL4A4, the7.62-mmversion of theBren, is seen in
African position on the border of South
a S outh
West Africa. In the struggle against SWAPO the
main aim is to prevent the gruerrillas entering the
country from their sanctuaries in Angola.

Lbove: A roof mounting for an MG3 is carried on a
aundeswehr truck. This form of mougting can be
:sed againstground targets, but is primarily
ntended for use as an anti-aircraft defence
:nounting. 7.62-mm (0. 30 -in) machine-guns are
r eally too ligh t for an ti- aircraft u s e, bu t have an
:nportant morale role.
Modern Machine-Gr-:ns
American troops from the US Army's componento!
the Allied Mobile Force (Land) (AMF(L)) aWht
from a B ell UH - t helicopter and imme diate ly ta ke
To many observers, the major shooting war up a defensive positionwith anM60.The grunner is
in progress today is that being fought daily in festooned with a spare ammunition belt, whtle his
Afghanistan, despite the far more massive con- Number 2 ensures the belt in use is fed cleanly.
flict in progress not far away on the Iran-lraq
borders. Again, this is a war where the the barrel, All the firer has to do is pull -:-=
machine-gun cannot have much effect on the trigger and keep the ammunition feed toppe:
actual fighting, but where it can have a fearful up, As the weapon flres the spread of fue ..
nuisance effect when handled properly, This is such that there is a good chance olhittrng a:-"--
particularly true in the steep mountain valleys thing in the chosen fleld of fire.
where one carefully emplaced machine-gun In NATO there is at present a state of '.ra::s--
can hold up a Soviet supply convoy for hours lion as far as machine-guns are concerr-= j
while the hapless Red Army soldiers and Many nations, includrng the USA and the -1.,
Afghan conscripts attempt to flnd the source of have now chosen to discard the genela--
the frre. Fortunately for the Red Army this does purpose machine-gmn (GPMG) concepi a:-j
not happen often, for the Afghans rely more on are reverting to the old ways of using a :-g:-.
their rrfles for this sort of ambush, In return the maclnne-gun designed for the job of squai -=
Soviet soldiers can do little more than rake the support. This will have the advantage of p::'
surrounding hillsrdes in the hope that some of vidlng the machine-gmnner wrth a far n::::
therr rounds find a bi]]et. manageable load and enable the squad tc c--
The Afghan campaign has seen one retum to
The American M60 machine-gun is used here i n
an old machine-gun tactic, and that is firing the light machine-gun role by a trooper of the 82nd
upon flxed 1lnes. During World War I machine- Airborne Division. The ammunition feed belt can
guns were often set up to flre on locatlons be clearly seen, and both in action and on the move
where an enemy was 1ikely to be, rather than to it can be something of a nuisance as it tends to
undertake aimed fire at a deflnite target. Thts snag anything nearby; the belts can cause jams
ploy was often used at night (when the target whentwisted.
was in any case invisrble) and at least it had the
advantage that it was likely to deny an easy exit
or access point to the enemy, In Afghanistan
this practice has once more been found useful,
The Afghan guerrillas often creep up to an
AJqhan army or Soviet outposl and open flre
with rockets or rifles in order to harass or de-
moralize rather than destroy anything impor-
tant. These missions are usually carried out at
night, when the defenders cannot readtly see
the attackers, so here a few prelaid machine
gmns covering likely approach routes or deliles
are simply fired ofl The machine-guns are em-
placed on tripods with their barrels elevated to
the correct degree and with their muzzles kept
on target by the use of stakes on each stde of
Left: The uniform of the Bundeswehr Gebirgsj dger
and theretentionof theMG3 for currentuse, many
years after its World War II predecessor the MG42
first appeared , gives the mountain warfare
division of the West German army a definite
wartime air; but it is simply a case of using the best
uniform and weapon for the j o b.
 # ;.

if ; ..F-j
3' :r-j
. lffl

'.,€="+n.

ry just one type of ammunition At present a support. Thus the Red Army has for long used a
squad going into action has to carry ammuni-
tion packed into magazines or into belts, which
means two loqistic loads instead of one. In fu-
ture the squad fire-support weapon and the
standard weapon will use the same box maga-
zrnes, with all the iogistic advantages that this
entails. A11 thrs is nothing new to the Red Army,
which was well to the fore in its post war tactrc-
al analysis and many years ago decided not
cnly to adopt the GPMG concept but also de-
velop a special machine rifle for squad f,re
mix ol APK assault rifles and RPK machrne
rifles, the latter being used as rather light
LMGs, The term light is used advrsedly, for the
RPK cannot deliver heavy bursts of flre, The
Red Army relies upon the PK for thls role,
which perhaps defeats the object at times, for
the PK uses a drfferenl ammunition and is also a
much heavier weapon, But already the RPK is
in the process of being replaced in the Red
Army's front-hne units by the RPK-74 flring the
new 5.45-mm (0.2146-in) round.
An LTAL is seen on its buffered tripod for the
sustained fire role. The tripod uses a sprhgr
mounting to absorb the gun's recoilforces to keep
the gun on its selected firing line for long periods
without having to constantly re-sight the weapon.
The MG3 and ifspredecessor, the World War I I
MG42, are widely used outside NATO and some
have turned up in guerrilla hands all over the
world. The bulk of these are old MG42s from
various stocks, but without looking at markings
and detail points they are difficult to differentiate
from the modern MG3s.

.'.:t

w
{'l*.,*q
re
',.,,::.

ffi
PI

b tr
ffird *
#he rr
t *;

-ry,

;*'
>K
-,','hen
[.oe-** Bren Gun Modern Machine-Guns
considering modern machine-
:Jls, rt seems somethrng of a surprise
'-:-at a weapon as old as the Bren Gun
::culd be included, especially as this
-.teapon can be traced back as far as
:e early 1930s, But the original Bren
l':ns were chambered for the 7.7-mm
, 303-in) rimmed cartridqe, and when
:-e decision was made to convert to
--e new standard NATO 7,62-mm (0.3-
:-; cartridgre the British armed forces
=--11had large stockpiles of the Bren
,1'rn to hand. It made sound commer-
:,a1 sense to conved them for the new
:ahbre, and such a prognamme was
:.cn put rnto effect at the Royal Small
-:-rms Factory at Enfield Lock in Mid-

The conversion to the new calibre

=:rtailed a complete overhaul, but the
.ask was made easier by the fact that
::ring World War II a Canadian com-
:ary produced numbers of Bren Guns
-:7.92-mm (0,3i2-in) calibre for China.
-r-s thr,s round was rimless, it was found
-:at the breechblocks intended for the
lhina contract' were equally suitable
-:: the new 7.62-mm cartridqe and
:ese were used in place ofthe oriqdn-
:;. A new barrel was produced with a
::romium-plated interior, This not
::Jy diminished wear on the barrel but
rso reduced the need for the frequent
:arrel-changes
-,',-ar
required on World
II versions, Thus the new qn-m was
-:sued with only the one barrel.
The current version of the Bren Gun
'--.ed by the Britlsh Army is the L444.
-:--rs is not used as a front-line infantry
',','eapon, but instead is issued to the
::any other arms of the service who
::quire a machine-gnrn. Thus the L4A4
. :sed by the Royal Artillery for anti-
and ground-defence of its bat-
=craft
teries, by the Royal Siqnals for the de-
fence of its rnstallations in the fieid, by
units assigined for home defence and
so on The L4A4 is also used by the
Royal Air Force and averston known
as the L4AS is used by the Royal Narry.
There is also a version known as the
L4A3 that is not often encountered as it
is a conversron of the old Bren Mk 2
gnrn; the L4A4 is a conversion of the
rmproved Bren Mk 3,
In all these versions the gas-
operated mechanism of the onqinal
Bren Gun remains unchanqed. So few
are the changes rnvolved in the
changre ofcalibre that the only points of
nole are lnat the'1 62.mm version uses
a nearly-vertrcal maerazine in piace of
the old curved equivalent, and the
muzzle lacks the pronounced cone
shape of the old weapon.
For the antl-arrcraft role the L4A4
has been fitted with some fairly soph-
isticated sighting aranqements, The
L4A4 does not use a tripod as did the
old Bren Gu;rs, but instead rt can be
mounted on the roof hatches of self-
propelled guns and howitzers as well
as on other armoured vehicles
So the old Bren G-rn soldiers on in a
new form, and there seems to be no
sigin of its passing from use in the fore-
seeable future. Many of the Common-
wealth natlons still use the Bren, some
in its origrnal 7.7-mm form, so althouqrh
the original desrgn may be oid the
weapon is still regarded as effective
and in its L4A4 form the old Bren Gun is
as good as many far more modern de-
slgns.
The latestversion of the venerable
wartime Bren gun is the British L4A4.
chambered for the N ATO 7. 6 2 -mm
(0.30-in) round. Ithas a new barrel,
breech block and a newvertical 30-
round box magazine and is nowused
by support and second-line British
Armyunits.
Specification
L4A4
Calibre: 7,62 mm (0.3 in)
Weights: qun only 9 53 kg (2 L 1b);
batrel?,7Z ks (6 lb)
Lengrths:gun 1133 mm (44 6 rn); barre,
536 mm (21.I in)
Muzzle velocity: 823 m (2 700 ft) per
second
Rate offire: (cyclic) 500 rpm
Tlpe offeed: 30-round box

ffi H.SO-** Liqrht Support Weapon (tSW)

::r many years the standard squad
--qrht machine-gmn for the British army
:-as been a versron of the FN MAG
--ed with a bipod and known as the
--A2. While this is a flne weapon, it is
:a:her a cumbersome load and rt flres a
:=ridge that is now generally consi-
r:red too powerful for the squad-
:-pport roie. With the imminent arrival
,- rhe Enfield Weapon System (or
Lali fums 80, otherwise SA B0), the
*--i2 is due to be replaced in the
.;:ad support role by a new weapon
:-,rrently known as the XL73E2 Light
S"ipport Weapon or LSW; the L7A2 will
:: retained for the sustained-fire func-
--::, or some years to come,
-:-e LSW is one half of the Enfield
", ::!on System, the other component
:=i:3l the Individual Weapon or IW,
',-:: wrll be the standard rifle while
-,= -SW will become the squad-
.-::ort weapon, The two new
--=-a:ns have many thinqs tn common
: r l1I be easrly recognized as com- With the FN rifle about to be the same calibre to replace the FN
, : rrl:r the same stable, but the LSW replaced by the 5.56-mm Individual MAG general purpose machine-gun.
'-- : :eavier barrel and a liqht bipod Weapon, the BritishArmy is The latter will be retained for the
: ,:- :C well forward under the bar- adopting a squad support weapon of sustained fire role.
:=. :-=re is also a rear grip under
,' --= :--,lrht be reqtarded as the butt to the pistol grip for the trrqqer are touqh cartridge, which ln turn was super- Seen here in front of the GPMG is the
:i ,r: re flrer with a better hold for nylonite, The LSW uses the same seded yet again in favour of the new 4.85-mm version of the Light Suppor:
, ----:--:i filng magazine as the IW, namely a stan- NATO standard 5.56-mm (0.219-in) SS Weapon, produced to complement
:,= ::n butt is rather misleadinq as dard Ml6AL 3O-round box, 109 The first production versions will the proposed 4.85-mm rifle. When
.'- ,!-.',- -s based on a'bullpup layout The LSW has undergone several be for the SS 109 round and will also NATO adopted the Belgian 5.56-m:'n
--,' ----:: .he trigger group is placed changes of calibre since it was first have an optical sight known as the round as sfandard, the 4.85-mm
: =-: :- .le magazine. This arrange- mooted. Originally it was calibred for Sight Unit Small Arms TrilLx or SUSAT designs were abandoned d e spite
-': - :--es the LSW more compact the British experimental 4,85-mm mounted on a bracket over the receiv- the ir superior pe rf orm anc e.
- . r:1-.,ent1onal weapon, Much of (0,19-in) cartridge, but thts was over- er, It will be possible to changre this
r - -:-,..' . steel but the foregrrip and ruled in favour of the American M193 slght for some form of night sight.
5.56-mm Light Suppofi Weapon (LSW) (continued)

The Light SupportWeapon shares

many componentswith the 5.56-mm
ri{le; obvious differences are the
heavy barrel, the bipod and the reat
grip. The LSW uses fie same
magazine as the IndividualWeapon
- the 30-round M I 6A I box.

Various accessories will be avail-

able for the LSW once it gets into ser-
vice, which should be some time dur-
ing 1985 if the current trrals go wel1, A
training adapter firing low-powered
ammunition will be avarlable, as will a
blank-flrrng attachment. A multi-
pupose tool is already in use for strip-
ping and first-line reparrs, and it will
be possible to flt a sling for carrying.
The muzzle attachment is so arranged
that it is possible for rtfle grenades to
be fired from the muzzle, although lt is
not envisaged that the LSW will be other considerations. By the time it Specification Lengrths: overall900 mm (35.43 in);
r:sed extenslely for this purpose. reaches the hands of the troops in the tsw barrel646 mm (25,43 in)
The LSW has undergone a prot- near future the LSW should be an ex- Calibre: 5,56 mm (0.219 in) Muzzle velocity: 970 m (3, 182 ft) per
racted development period, some of cellent weapon with no bugs left to iron Weights:gmn complete and loaded second
the period being elongated by the out, 6,88 kg (15. 17 Ib); gnrn less magazine Rate offire: (cyclic) 700-850 rpm
change of NATO standard calibre and andsiqht 5.6 ks (12.346 Ib) Type offeed: 30-round box magazine

lI ?.Hl** AA s2
time the French army was equipped
with a wide array of American, Brittsh
and ex-German weapons, and the fur-
nishing of suppofi and spares for this
affay was too much for the army, whictt
decided to adopt one standard gener-
al-purpose machine-gnrn, The result
was the 7.5-mm (0,295-in) AA 52, a
weapon designed from the outset for
ease of production, and thus making
much use of stampings and welded
components.
The AA 52 is unusual among modern
machine-gn:ns in relying on a form of
deiayed-blowback operation, tn
which the force of the cartridge firing
is employed to force back the breech
biock to the starting position, and also
to power the feed mechanism, This
system works very well with pistol car-
tridges in sub-machine gnrns, but using
rifle cartridges in machine-guns de-
mands something more positive safe-
rf
ty is to be regarded. On the AA 52 a
hvo-pad block is used: a lever device
rs so arranged that it holds the forward
part of the block in posrtion while the
rear half starts to move to the rear; only
when the lever has moved a predeter-
mined drstance does it allow the for-
ward part of the block to move back, In
order to make the spent cartndge
easier to extract the chamber has
qrooves that allow gas to enter be-
tween the chamber wall and the fired
cartridge to prevent 'sticking', and a
cartddge fired from an AA 52 can al-
ways be recognized by the fluted
grooves around the case neck.
The AA 52 can be fired from a bipod
or a tripod, but when a tripod is used
for the sustarned flre role a healry bar-
rel is fltted to the weapon, When used
in the light machine-gnrn role the AA 52
is a rather clumsy weapon to cary,
especially if a 5O-round ammunition
box rs carried on the left-hand side,
For this reason the box rs often left off
and the ammunition belt allowed to
hang free, One unusual feature of the
AA 52 is that for the light machine-gnrn
role a monopod is fltted under the butt,
This can be awknrard at trmes, and
another awkward point is the barrel
change: the barrel can be removed
readily enough, but the bipod is per-
manently attached to the barrel and in
the light machine-gun role this can
make barrel-changing very difflcult,
especrally as the AA 52 barrels have
no form of barrel plating that might
reduce the temperature ofthe gnrn and
barrel,
The AA 52 was originally intended
to fire a 7.5-mm (0.295-in) cartridge
first developed for use by the mle 1929
light machine-gnrn, This cartridge is
powerful enough, but the switch to the
NATO 7.62-mm (0,3 in) cartridge left
the Prench army usrng a non-standard
cartddge, and export prospects for the
AA 52 were thus reduced. The basic
design has therefore been adapted to
fire the NATO cartrrdge in a version
known as the NF-I, Some of these have
been issued to French army units, but
exports have not materialized.
Overall the AA 52 is an adequate
machine-gun, but it has many features
(some of them regarded by some na-
tions as inherently unsafe) that are at
best undesirable, The weapon is no
longer in production but is still offered
for export,
Specification
AA52
Calibre: 7,5 mm (0.295 in)
Weights: with bipod and light barrel
9.97 kq (21.98 lb ); wlth blpod and
hearrybarrel 11,37 kg (25.07 1b); tripod
10 6 kq (23 37 Ib)
Lengrths: with butt extended (light
barrel) 1145 mm (45,08 in) or (heavy
barrel) 1245 mm (49.02 in); ltght barrel
only 500 mm (19,69 in); heavy barrel
only 600 mm (23,62 in)
Muzzlevelocity:840 m (2,756 ft) per
second
Rate offire: (cyclic) 700 rpm
Type offeed: 50-round belt
The French AA 52 uses a delayed
blowback mechanism with a fluted
chamber to ease exfuaction.47.62-
mm (0.30-in) version known as the
4A7.62NF-l mayalsobe
encountered, but neither model is
now in production. Bipod and tripod
versions are in use, as are vellbje-
mountedmodels.

A.fuve : T he F re nch F oreign Leg ion

use exactly the sameweapons as the
rest of the French army and so the AA
52 machine-grun, seen here inits light
machine-gun form, is a familiar sight
wherever the legion operates.

-:-: nachirie-gun now known as the

AA 52 was designed and develoPed
r'-:iJy as a result of the Indo-China
:.=::parems of the early 1950s. At that
 Modern Machine-Gums
Heckler & Koch machine-guns
l:-: West German concern Heckler &
.l-::h, based at Oberndorf-Neckar, ts
=i:cnq the most prolific of all modern
r:,all-arms designers, and in addition
--- :'s successful range of assault n{les
j
-- sub-machine gnrns it also produces
=-nde variety of machine-En:ns. 1t may
:e ar oversimplification, but Heckler
i Koch machine-guns are basically
:-:Crfied versions of the company's G-
: :rd associated assault rifles, They all
-= the same delay-roller mechanism
::- their breech blocks, and some of
:e light machine-guns are simply
::es with heavier barrels and a bipod,
l: confuse the issue, Heckler & Koch
;:cduce virtually every model tn belt-
The Heckler & KochHK 1I is the box magazine feedvariant of the HK 2l and is a 7.62-mm (0.30-in) weapon.
--d magazine-fed versions, and some
::e produced tn 7.62-mm (0.3-in)
l.-4.TO or 5.56-mm (0.219-in) calibres,
-.I]l the added variation in the latter
r:: the new SS 109 cartridge or the
:-der American M193.
One of the 'base' models in the range
. the 7.62-mm HK 2141, a develop-
::-ent of the earlier HK 21 whlch is no
-::rger in productron. The HK 2IA1
*.es a belt feed and may be used as a
-qht machine-gun on a bipod or in the
--:stained-fire
-=::er,
role on a tripod, For the
barrel changing is incorporated,
:-;en in this version of the Heckler &
1:ch range the outline of the G-3 rs
--pparent, and this is carried over to the
-=:est versions of the HK 21, the HK 2IE,
r;ach has a longer sight radius and a
:ree-round burst selection feature,
l:e barrel is longer, and changes TheHeckler &KochHK 13 is producedin severalversions.Thismodel accommodates a41-roundbox magazine.
:ive been made to the ammunition
:eed. There is also a 5,57-mm counter-
:art to this variant, and this is known as
-:-e HK 23E.
AII the variants mentloned above
=:e belt-fed weapons, There is also a
::agazine-fed version for every one of
----em: the HK IIAI IS the magazine
:::.$terpart of the HK 21A1, whlle the
-fi IlE and HK I3E are the magazine
--:.:rrterparts of the HK 2lE and HK
:.iE.
A1l this may sound rather confusing,
::: the basic factor that emerges is the
.:l-rty of Heckler & Koch to produce a
:.chine-gnrn suited to virtually any re-
;---:ement. The belt-fed versions may
:= regarded as general-purpose
:::chine-guns (although the 5.56-mm The Heckler & Koch HK 13E has a three-round burst capability as well as fuL[ automatic fire.
';::sions may really be too light for the
rj:amed-fire role), and the magazine-
,=i versions as true hght machine-
. --. They offer a surprising amount of
parts, and
---:::changeability of spare
:: :nagazines are usually the same as
::se used on ther equivalent assault
:':s making the use of the automatic
;-- as squad support weapons even
:::_at.

Speeification
E2IAl
la:bre:7.62 mm (0,3 tn)
fi':rghts: gnrnwrth bipod 8,3 kg
,: : -b): barrel 1,7 kq (3,75 lb); 100-
: - -;ammunition box 3.6 kg (7 94 lb)
i,,e:gths:overall 1030 m (40.55 tn); TheHeckler & Koch HK 2l is no longer produced, but is still in usewith nations such as Portugal.
::::=-i50 mm(17,72 in)
lft-le velocity: 800 m (2,625 ft) per
:s::::-tr
Ia: cf Ere: (cyclic) 900 rpm
T-;e cf feed: 1OO-round belt

:Ye iK 2 I Ai is a development of the

s::er HK 2 L It uses a belt feed only,
::€ b€/t car be contained in a box
.irrif
;:.u:g under fie receiver.
E }:'6;-H;MG3
One of the outstandinq machine-grun
designs of World War II was the MG42,
a weapon that introduced the advan-
tages of mass production to an area of
weapon design that had for long clung
to tradrtional methods of construction
With the MG42, the new era of steel
pressings, welds and the elimination of
many machining processes was allied
to an excellent desiqn that attracted
widespread respect and attention.
Thus, when the Federal Republic of
Germany became a member ofNATO
ald was once more allowed a measure
of weapon production for rearmament,
the MG42 was one of the first designs
to be resurrected.
The original MG42 had a calibre of
7.92 mm (0,312 in), but with the adop-
tion of the standard NATO 7,62-mm
(0.3-in) round the old design was re-
worked to accommodate the new
calibre, At flrst stockpiled MC42s
7.62-mm Uirapuru Mekanika
Over recent decades Brazil has
:hanqed from being a defence-
equrpment importer to a nation that
exports over 95 per cent of its defence
rdr.rstry's produce. The nation has un-
Coubted talent for the defence-based
-:dustdes, and in an effort to harness
scme of this talent to productng small
arns a design team was established in
--:e early 1960s to develop a qeneral-
p:npose machine-gun. This first de-
s:gn team was led by a team of three
e).-peds, but while its initial destgns
-.';orked they had many inherent prob-
-:;is. These were too numerous for the
pcssrloitity of acceptance by the Brazi-
prob-
-an anny, who turned the design
-:n over to a private concern, This
:a:ed no better than the original team,
s: cne of the original triumvirate took
:',-er the project on his own,
Jsrng the facilities of a design and
:esearch establishment, this indivrdual
:pproach worked, Thus there
:r:erged a design now known as the
Uirapuru Mekanika after a Brazilian
"-:gie brd, The Uirapwu is a general-
;'-r!\ose machine-gun frring standard
l'-:-lO 7.62-mm (0.3-in) ammumtion It
:-- be used as a light machine-gnrn
-,'-- jr a butt and bipod, or it can be flred
::r. a heavy tnpod for the heavy
::a::he-gmn role, It can also be fltted
;;: a solenoid for use as a co-axial
T:apon on armoured vehicles, and it
:-- be adapted to firing from anumber
:: :-:er mounts,
-:. appearance the Utrapuru is
::-:er long, ulgainly{ooking weapon,
=:pecially when fitted with a butt for
were simply modified to this calibre
with the designation MG2 but rn para-
llel with this activity a production prog-
ramme was under way by Rhernmetail
to produce new weapons in 7,62-mm
callbre, There were several variants of
this production version, all having the
designation MGI, althouqh there were
some mlnor changes to suit ammuni-
tion feed and so on, The current pro-
duction version is the MG3, still manu-
factured by Rheinmetall
In appearance, the warlime MG42
and the MG3 are identical apart from
some minor details, few of which can
be detected by the untrained eye, and
there are more chanqes between the
MGl and MG3 Overall, however the
modern MG3 retains all the attributes
of the oriqinal, and many of the mount-
inqs used with the MG3 are just
adaptations or modifrcations of the
World War II originals, Thus the MG3
the light machine-qun role. It uses a
conventional qtas-operated mechan-
lsm with an ofihodox belt feed for the
ammunition, and the barrel can be
changed rapidly usinEr a handle that
also acts as a carryinqt handle for the
weapon. The receiver of the weapon is
very simple, beinq little more than a
length of tube containing the breech
block and its return sprrng. What
appears to be a rectangular receiver Is
in fact the ammunition feed mechan-
ism. The method of tapping off gas
from the barrel is also simple, No Eas
regnrlating block or valve is used, the
gas impinqeing drrectly onto the re-
turn mechanism, No provision appears
to have been made for finnq single
shots.
The barrel of the Uirapuru has a
large pepperpot-type muzzle brake
and it is recommended that the barrel
is chanqed after every 400 rounds
have been fired. Most of the parts
appear to require some machining,
which should ensure a rugged con-
srruction. The BrazLlian army gave lts
approvai to the Uirapuru after lenqthy
trials and the type s now being pre-
pared for full production at a factory
near Rio de Janeiro. If past Brazilian
salesmanship is any gmide, it will not
be long before the frrst examples are
seen outside Brazil, for if the Uirapuru
can withstand the varied combat con-
ditions that can be encountered rn Bra-
zil it wrll put up with virtually anything,
a and the simple construction certainly
should keep the price of a weapon
down.
can be used on a tripod that is virtually
tdentical to the original, and the twin
mountinq for anti-arrcraft use could still
accommodate the MG42 without trou-
ble, There are now available many
mountings for the MC3.
The original MG42 was designed for
ease of mass production, and this same
feature makes the MG3 very suitable
for manufacture in some of the less
well-equipped arsenals that now
abound in 'third-world' nations. The
MG3 has proved to be relatrvely easy
for such facilities and it is now licence-
produced in nations such as Pakrstan,
Chile, Spain and Turkey; some ofthese
nations fabricate versions of the MGl
rather than the MG3 proper. Yuqtosla-
via also produces a version of this
weapon, but the Yugoslav model is a
direct copy of the MG42, still 1n 7.92-
mm calibre and desigrnated SARAC
MI953.
Specification
Uirapuru Mekanika
Calibre: 7,62 mm (0.3 in)
T he Brazilian 7.62 -mm (0.30-in)
Uirapuru Mekanika is the first
locally - produ ced m achine- gun
design to enter production, and
although it appears at first sight to be
rather long it is an efficient and
Within NATO the MG3, or one or
other of its variants, are used by the
Bundeswehr, by the ltalian armed
forces, and by nations such as Den-
mark and Norway, Portugal makes the
MG3 for use by the Portugnrese armed
forces, and is now offering the type for
export, Thr.rs from many sources the
old MG42 design soldiers on, There is
even talk of further development to
produce a lighter version, but this is
proceedinq at a low priority, for the
basic desrgrn of the MG3 is still as
sound as it ever was, and any attempt
to improve or .modify the original
appears to many to be an exerclse ab-
out as fruitful as redesiqning the wheel,
Specification
MG3
Calibre:7.62 mm (0,3 in)
Weights: basic qnrn 10,5 kg (23. 15 lb);
bipod0,55 kg(1,213 lb); barrel 1,8 kg
(3 97 rb)
tengths: gn:n with butt ]225 mm
(48,23 in); gnrnlessbutt 1097 mm
(43,19 in); barre]531 mm(20,91 in)
Muzzle velocity: 820 m (2,690 ft) per
second
Rate offire: (cyclic) 700- 1,300 rpm
Tlpe of feed: 5O-round belt
The West German MG3 is the
mod ern ver sion of the w ar time
MG42, and is currently rated as one
of the best machine-guns of its type
used by NATO. I t has a high rate of
fire and an easy and rapid barrel
change, and canbefiredfrom the
bipod shown or from a heavy tripod
for the sustained fire supportrole.
Weight: with butt and bipod 13 kg
(2B 66 rb)
Lengrths: with butt 1300 mm (51.2 in);
barrel600 mm (23.62 in)
Muzzie velocity: 850 m (2,789 ft) per
second
Rate offire: (cyclic) 650-700 rpm
Type offeed: 5O-round belt
Armed Forces of the World

lran
: rcethefallof thelateShahof lrar '.:--:-. -379.
':^ has been ruled by a gro"p:''.':s:-'-'-
:,rrentalists, and in this lact lie tr: -: - i1':- 3:-s
:rd weaknesses of the modern 'z' z^ z'-ed
':-ces Tne strengths inc'ude wn:'. -< , '.-a , = . a-
::n n arms defending its terrton :-: rs '::-. :re
::rer producing a military reTvo--:-'::-l'::s a
:rwerful morale and motvat 19 ':':: --: ..':a<-
-3sses come with the same Mos er '-^::rertal-
sm applied to power politics :n ,'''. 3- 1^3 arrri€d
':rces have been purged and'clea"se: :'a-\ per-
-rlnnel or influences thought to encaige':-e status
r'power of the regime. Thus prc'ess:na r,i,tary
::rsonnel have been either exec-:ei l- 'e-loved
''cm office, leaving mllitary direc:c^ ic varous L]ir,11,;
':rms of revolutionary guards who na,"e 'eceatedly
:rown themselves to have more 'en'o,.'or actton
:ran military ability. ln fore gn af'a's :re fun-
:amentalist regime has conducted itse' r such a
.','ay that it has virtually no allres to prov'oe s r cpcrt of
:ry kind, and the internal econom cs o' ran are now
= shambles.
During the Shah's regime the arrned'orces tparti-
-:larly the army) were provided with all iney desired
:rC more. Vast sums from oil revenues were spent
: r obtaining the f inest equtpment on the mar<et and
: lavish support infrastructure was establ'shed,
:=ten employing imported knowhow and personnel.
"^,1lth the fall of the Shah allthis changed.
Tne armed
':rces became the subject of scrutiny and suspi-
: cn, and many senior officers were simply killed or
: rowed to leave the country. Then rn September
"980 came the war wlth lraq.
At first the lranian armed forces did well, severely
':puising the invading lraqis. But the war then de- fixed lines along the border between lran and lraq to Spearheading both the military effott and the
generated into two opposing defensive lines, and act as pillboxes. Large numbers must be unservice- Islamic revolution inside lran are the
::spite a number of offensives and counter- able for lack of spares and the required main- Revolutionary Guards. I 25,000 strong, their
tenance. The same must be said of most of the equipment is motley and their training mediocre,
:-ensives the war has now settled into a conf lict of bu t their determin a tion to s tamp the M idd Ie E as t
: mple attrition and waiting for one side or the other army's other equipment, which ranges from Sovlet with their brand of extremist religion ensures
.: break. The war has also seen the loss of a great trucks and BMP MICVs to Brazilian EE-9 armoured continuing conflict.
::al of the lranian armed forces' equipment, either cars. Much of the artillery, which includes the usual
:. enemy action or through lack of spares and array of Soviet and American towed and self- propelled equipments, appears still to be operatton-
- aintenance. Thus the army is now severely limited al, but ammunition stocks for most of the guns.
- :he nu mbers of weapons it has to hand, and the air kanian Chiettains captured intact by the lraqis including the Soviet 122-mm (4.8-in) rocke:-
':.ce has only a handful of serviceable aircraft left. ouBide Abadan in 1981 . Despite their qualitative launchers, must by now be getting low. For an: -
-.e navy has all but ceased to exist apart from a few superiority, some 200 Chieftains tell into lraqi aircraft defences the army has to rely on light tol,r'ec
hands as the I ranian army, weakened by the /oss of weapons rather than the more complex US l--
-::stal vessels. For this reason it is not possible to prolessional officers, retreated in confusion. There
:-c ish an 'Order of Battle', for any manpower or proved HAWK and Soviet seltpropelled ZSL)-Z3-L
are repoils that some of the captured Chieftains
,'.:apon totals would be at best slmple guesses or are being overhauled by the lraqis before delivery While the army is still retained for its expen s:
: -'e hypothesis. to the Royal Jordanian army in return for King and staff ability, combat is now generally assun s:
I/ussern 3 asstsfance. by lhe Pasdaran, or Revolutionary Guard Cor':s
The lranian Army
-re lranlan army can now be roughly divided into
---:e main components: the old regular army
,.,i+h i+^ ^^^^^'i^+ h' 'lr. rh^
the Qarrnlr r+innanr
l3:ner with its conscript bulk; Revolutionary
-:'C Corps or Pasdaran, the loose organization
.: -ow provides the bulk of lran's military man-
-.',3:, the Basse/, who may be regarded as little
-:-= ihan barely trained cannon-fodder; and the
= -:cllahi, who are a form of home defence force
::.Jt the same military status as the Bassei,
--: 'egular army now'exists as a closely defined
',- :' about 50,000officers and men, whose main
- : :c train the conscrlpts who pass through the
' = .: ihe rate of about 1 00,000 at any one time to
-: ::e their 24 months' service (although few
-:::e the full term). At one time the army had
.= ='ooured divisions equipped with Soviet T-54/
' . ,-: --62s (about 190) along with a force of 300
" :-:: -s and 300 M47s or M48s and 150 M60s.
i -. . -l\,vmanyof thisforceare leftis nowalmost
: ::: : 3 to say. Many have been lost to enemy
: - :- l more have been dug into the defensive

Siz Lc,cklleed P-3F Orions were proanred before
the revolution. It is now believed that only two
airsatt arefully operational,wiih two lostand two
annibalized. Operations are conducted from
Bandar Abbas (Tactical Air Base/Vo. 9).
Formed out of the eager revolutionaries who
brought about the fall of the Shah, this is now a
revolutionary shock force whose men are regarded
as the main defenders of the Moslem fundamental-
ist movement. They number about 1 50,000, and are
infantry-based with appropriate equipment. What
supporting weapons they require they take f rom the
army. The Pasdaran is organized into battalions
which operate in brigade groups, sometimes in co-
operation with the army and sometimes indepen-
dently. There are supposed to be naval and air ele-
ments of lhe Pasdaran, but such elements are be-
lieved to be nominal only.
The Bassei is at least partially trained and equip-
ped with small arms (the usual lranian service rifle ls
the Heckler und Koch G3). Operationally. the young
and almost fanatical volunteers are attached to
tont-line units: they are used mainly as massed
;nfantry in the offensive, and generally advance in
the'human wave' formation that produces massive
casualties in their ranks. Of late volunteers for the
BasseJ have started to fall in number, so its ranks
have been swelled by hapless members of the Herz-
fhis organization is nominally a home-
bollahi.
defence force, but the total of no less than
2.500,000 comprises all available able-bodied men
and youths. Many members are volunteers, but
rnany others are detailed by local administrations to
meet imposed quota requirements. Training for the
bulk of the members is at best sketchy, and few
weapons are available until the men are sent to a
front ln many cases fanaticism has made lhe Herz'
bol/ahiunits into formidable combat forces, but their
casualties have been very high.
ln addition to the three main formations men-
t:oned above, the army can still call upon a few
reseryes who have passed through the army con-
script or regular training process, though most of
lnese assets have now been impressed into some
{orm of service or another. The army has available
the gendarmerie, which includes border guards and
rhe Mostazafin (a type of civil guard), but both of
these are usually assigned to internal security.
ln all its forms the lranian army is stili a formidable
fighting force, though it is now being drastically
affected by a general lack of equlpment, spares and
ammunition. As a result of the extreme policies
adopted by lran's lslamic ruling elite there now
appears to be little chance that this situation will be
remedied in the near future. The only practical ally
now possessed by lran is North Korea, and as North
Korean aid has to be airlifted in Boeing 747SP trans-
ports, such aid is very limited although reports have
been made that some Type 59 tanks have been
del vered.
At one time the Army Aviation Command dis-
posed of 65 light aircraft and some 470 helicopters.
How many of these are still operational it is impossi-
ble to discover. Heaviest of the helicopters were 92
Boeing Vertol CH-47C Chinooks.
The lranian Air Force
The late Shah lavished as much attention and
money on the air force as he did upon the army, but
with his fall the air force suffered rather more from
the lslamic fundamentalists than did the army.
Many of the air force.officers were consldered as
too 'westernized' by the new regime and were tre-
ated accordingly. Many were either executed or
forced to leave the country; some did so by deser-
tion (a course of action still widespread), taking their
aircraft with them: not surprisingly this has had a
disastrous effect on the combat efficiency of the air
force. Many of the best men have now gone, and
this situation is exacerbated by the lack of spare
parts and maintenance for the more sophisticated
equipment, among which can be found some of the
most advanced aviation hardware in existence.
For example, at one time the air force had four
squadrons equipped with a total of 77 Grumman
F-144 Tomcat fighters. lt is now doubtful if more
than five could be made operational, and those only
by a process of cannibalization of other aircraft. The
same could be said of the 90 McDonnell Douglas F4
Phantoms that once equipped 10 squadrons. Now
fewer than 1 0 are left and these are reserved for the
defence of oil installations and the capital, Tehran. lt
is likely that larger numbers of Northrop F-5E and
F-SF fighters are still operational as these are much
simpler aircraft to maintain, and one source states
that about 50 remain. The same can be said for the
fleet of Lockheed C-1 30 transports, and a number of
the original fleet of 52 are still operational. lt is
unlikely that many of the Rapier and Tigercat sur-
face-to-air missile squadrons are still operational.
Some of the fleet of 12 Boeing 707 and seven
Boeing747 transport aircraft (some of the Boeing
707s were also used as tankers but this role is
unlikely to have been retained) are still operational
and maintain a tenuous link with the commercial
ILP^ss m
E Iran
arms trade abroad, through which some spares for
the F-4s and F-5s have been channelled. High prices
are known td have been paid for such purchases
despite the fact that many of these spares.are of
doubtful quality. Reports have been made that
some new aircraft have been obtained via North
Korea, mainly MiG-l9s and MiG-21s along with ex-
Chinese F-6 fighters, but these reports have yet to
be confirmed.
The lranian Navy
The lranian navy has never been a large naval
force, but the recent war has made it mueh smaller
and current operational missions are confined large-
ly to coastal patrols and the defence of the oil in-
stallations at Kharg lsland. At one time the main
strength of the navy was invested in three des-
troyers and four frigates (some of them missile-
armed), but most of these are now either harbour-
bound or have been lost during combat missions
against raqi naval forces. The rest of the vessels are
I
either ex-American corvettes (of which only two out
of four now remain) and a larger number of small
patrol vessels. lt must be assumed that the fleet of
eight SRN-6 and six BH-7 hovercraft is no longer
operational.
A small navy air arm is still maintained, and some
reports mention that two Lockheed P-3F Orions are
still operational. A fleet of i 6 helicopters (10 Sikors-
ky SH-3Ds and six Sikorsky RH-53Ds) may still be
operational, but the helicopters are no doubt subject
to the same spares restrictions as the equipment of
other armed forces. However, the navy is able to
obtain some sort of priority due to its importance in
guard.ing the oil installations and shipping lanes on
which the shaky lranian economy still depends. The
recent attacks on oil tankers in the Persian Gulf have
emphasized the importance of the maritime
approaches to Kharg lsland, and many of the remain-
lng navy vessels are now stationed nea r there; other
bases are at Bandar Lengeh, Bandar Abbas,
Bushehr, Bandar-e-Khomeini and Bandar-e-Anzali.
A Soviet-supplied BM 2 I I 22-mm'Katyusha'
rockets lraqi posidons on ffie southern front. Since
the lraqi invasion ground to ahalt, thewat has
stagnated into a series ofartillery duels
punctuated by clumsy lranian counterattacks, The
BM 21 fires a40-rocketsalvoto amaximumrange
of 20.5 km(12.7miles).
,l
;t
7
-J
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